F 53 

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JONAS GALU8HA, 



TUK FFFTII GOVERNOR OF VERMONT. 



A M E M O J R 



n R A I) n r; v o n k t ii k 



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% 



\ViiAll f 



mtm 



IN PRESENCE OF THE 



GENERAL ASSEMIU.Y OF VERMONT, 



AT MONTPFUER, IG OCTOBER 18G6. 



BV RKV. P»LTNY II. WHITR 



MONTPELIER: 

F. . V . w A r, r <) N , r R I N T E R 
1 8 G r, . 



JONAS GALUSHA 

THE FIFTH GOVERNOR OF VERMONT, 

A MEMOIR 

REAP n K IT O U R THE 






I :5H¥it0i'icaii mt\m 



IN PRESENCE OP THE 



GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF VERMONT, 

AT MONTPFLIER, IG OCTOBER 18GG. 



BY REV. PLINY TirWHITE. 



MONTPELIER: 

E. P. WALTON, PRINTER 
1860. 



1-55 






JONAS GALUSHA: THE FIFTH GOA^ERNOK 
OF VER^rOXT. 



\ 



BY RF.V. PLIXY 11. WmiK. 



The Galusha Family is one of the olde.st in New 
England. Early in the seventeenth century, Jacol) 
Galusha, when about eight years old, was abducted 
fi'oni AVales by persons interested in an estate to 
which he was hkely to become an heir. He was sent 
to Xew England, settled near Plymouth, Mass., and 
became the ancestor of a numerous family. He had 
two sons, Jacob and Daniel. Daniel, the younger of 
them, had three sons, Jacob, Daniel and Jonas. 
Jacob married Lydia Huntington, daughter of Matthew 
Huntington of Preston, Ct., and a relative of Gov. 
Samuel Huntington. He was a farmer and black- 
smith, in moderate circumstances, l)ut of unblemished 
character, sound judgment, and much native shrewd- 
ness. They had five sons, the third of whom, f Jonas, 
afterwards governor of Yermont, was born in Norwich, 
Ct. 11 February 1758.* When he was less than three 

".laci.l. Caliolia lia.I f<mi-«ivi'>. Bv tin- liist, Lvdia Iliititint-'toii. lio liail live suns, David. 
.Jacol). -lona^. Alii. IS. ami i:ii)ali: and ■|oMr dau^'litc-rs. Marv. olive, l.vdia. ami Aiinr. Hv Hi.- 

sci-.iiid. ■riiaiikliil Killer, lie liiid mic dall^'llll•l•. I v. I{.\ the tlilid. Desire ( Aiidnis) .Meli-a'ir. he 

had rmii' sons, Daniel, lienjaniin, Kzi'a, and Klias; and two dailKl'lL'is, Di^slre and Sally. I!v his 
I'uurtli wile. Ahigail Kuster, he had no I'hildi-cn. She was a wonnni uf Ki'i'it slrinjith" ,nid 
loufft'vit.v. In her Mith year she was baptized li.v iniinerslon ami joined the liaiitist Chiiieli in 
Sliallshnr.v, Vt., and wlien ninety years old, she rode hi uwa^un tiHy miles in a day wlih no 
serious ineonvenlenee. With reference to the temper and disposition of Ids four wives, Mr. 
(iaiusha remarked, lu his shrewd wav: — •• I have been twice In heaven, once on eartli, and •nice 
in lull." 

2 



4 Jonas Galusha: 

years old, he fell into a small pond of water, near 
which he, with his brothers and sisters, had been 
playing, and remained in the Avatcr till his sister Mary 
i-an a qnarter of a mile and called the father, who 
came, rescued him from the water, and succeeded in 
restoring him. 

In ir69, Jacob Galnsha and his family removed to 
Salisbui-y, Ct., and thence in the spring of 1775, to 
Shaftsbnry, Vt. * ]S[one of his sons had recei^'ed 
any education, except the very limited one that was 
afforded by the common schools of that period; but 
their strength of mind and energy of character soon 
made them leading men in the to^Yn, and to some 
extent in the State. David, the eldest of the brothers, 
was the representative of Shaftsbnry in 1779. Jacob, 
the second, was elected town clerk in 1781:, and held 
the office forty-one years. He was also justice of 
the peace for a long term, and the representative of 
Shaftsbnry, for ten consecutive years, 1801-1811. t 
Amos, the fourth, served in the revolutionary army, 
and, during the administrations of Jefferson and 
Madison, rendered them very efficient support by his 
contributions to the periodical press. J 

Soon after his removal to Shaftsbnry, Jonas Galusha 
set up a shop for making nails, and also carried on a 
farm for his brother David. He became at length a 
farmer on his own accoiuit, and pursued that employ- 
ment through life, except as he Avas withdrawn from 
it by official engagements. Possessing a strong 

• It is wovtliy of reiiiai-k, tliat several of tlie most distiiiiruislied early families of A'criiiiinl. 
in. liiiliiif;, besides the tialuslias, the Aliens, Thipmaus, and Chittendeiis, were emigrants tVoni 
^;disli\irv. 

t lie was liorn s Jannarv IT.'il, and died '.'r) Jnlv 1S:U. 

J lie (lied about IM". Klijali, tlir ,M>init;cst brother, married Beulah, daughter of(;o\ernor 
Thomas Chillenden, bill lost liis life \, ithiii a year or two liy an accidental injury in a sawmill al 
Arlinjjton. He left one son. His widow married C'ol. Matthew hyon. 



Fifth Governor of Yrrmont. 5 

constitution and vi<>or()ns physical powers, he was 
able, even to advanced a<;e, to do the Cull work of a 
man, with hoe, scythe, sickle, oi- axe, and never 
requii'cd any of his laborers to <>-o beyond what he 
himself did. Notwithstanding his constant em])loy- 
ment on the farm, he found opportunity to add to his 
stock of knowledge b}^ reading, and to cidtivate 
})ractical wisdom by observation and rejection. 

When the revolutionary struggle commenced, he 
took an active ])art in favor of the independence ol' 
the colonies. He was a member of a company, com- 
manded by his brother David, in Col. Seth AVarner's 
I'cgiment of Green Mountain Boys, and did service in 
Canada in the fall of 177o. Prior to the battle of 
Bennington, 10 August 1777, two companies of militia 
had been organized in Shaftsbury, one of them under 
his captaincy, the other iniderthat of Amos Hunting- 
ton ; but Captain Huntington being taken prisoner at 
Ticonderoga, the two companies were consolidated 
under Capt. Galusha. When he received orders from 
Col. Moses Kobinson to march his company to Ben- 
nington, he was sick in bed, recovering from a ie^'er, 
but he promptly called out his men and led them to 
the scene of action. 

On the day of the battle, his company had occasion, 
on account of a bend in tlie Walloomsac Kiver, to 
ford the river twice, on their way to attack Baunfs 
rear. He Avas so weak that, at the first crossing, a 
soldier insisted u[)on carrying him over, but (!xcite- 
ment gave him such strength that he crossed the 
second ford without assistance, and was in tlie hottest 
of the battle during the rest of the day. After Baum 



6 Jonas Oalnsha: 

was defeated, and the victors were resting from their 
fatigue, or w(ii-e scattered about the held, gathering 
lip the spoils, Bnrgoyne came up with reinforcements, 
and the Green Mountain Boys were compelled to fight 
and win the battle a second time. During this second 
struggle, he was brought within easy range of one of 
Burgoyne's pieces of artillery, from which two heavy 
charges of grape-shot were sent all around him, fur- 
rowing the ground at his feet, and cutting the bushes 
at each side of him and over his head, but leaving him 
unscathed. * He continued in active military service 
till the surrender of Burgoyne, on which occasion he 
was present at the head of his company; and at 
several other times he, with his company, was under 
arms for a few days or weeks, as approaching danger 
might require. 

In October 1778, when not quite twenty-six years 
old, he married Mary Chittenden, daughter of Ctov. 
Thomas Chittenden, by whom he had five sons and 
four daughters, t 

In March 1781 he was elected Sherifl:' of the County 
of Bennington. The duties of the ofl[ice at that early 
period of the history of Vermont were onerous and 
perplexing to the very last degree. The great mass 
of tlie people were extremely poor and deeply in debt, 

* In tills battle, the life of one of Galiislia's men was iiresi-rved in a somewhat remarkable 
manner. lie eanie in eontact witli a tory. willi whom hi' had ))revi<insly lieeii aei|iiainte<l, and a 
hand-to-hand contlict ensne(l, in wliich the tory sneceech'd in tIn-owinK Idm to the eartli, and was 
jnst about to inllirl a fatal wound. .Inst at tliat nionu-nt a Hessian soldit'r <'ame i-nnnliif; towards 
'ihem. and, in Ids haste, mistaking the eharaeter of the ooinliatants, run the tory throuffb with 
Ills bavcniet and released the whig. Much to the Hessian's surprise, he soon found hinis<lf a 
prisoner to the man whose life he had ])reserved. 




seconn, one son ano I lu-ee oau;;iuei s. m i.-*_'> in- jeiiiov eo lo .»eiu; au<i o<-ranie ana eontni- 

ued to be a h-ading man in tlie town and eonnty. lie was the i-eprescntali^ e of .leiieho in tlie 
(ieneral Assembly in Isi'T, is-js. and l,s:>ii. a. niendier of the ("oustitntional Convention in l,s:i(i and 
|(SW,and a.IudgeofChittenden County <'ourt in IfH!) and ISoO, He was once a candidate forCon- 



Fifth Governor of Vermont. 7 

and their iinlbrtiinate condition was greatly aggravated 
by the want of a cash market for their produce, and 
by the depreciation of the currency which took phice 
at the close of the Revolutionary War. The laws, too, 
foi- the collection of del)ts were very severe, n(jtonly 
subjecting all the debtor's property, except the barest 
necessaries, to attachment and execution, but making 
his person liable to impi-isonment, with no possibility 
of release but by paying the debt. * The criminal laws 
were also cruel and inhuman. Among the punish- 
ments Avhich they authorized were, whipping, setting 
in the stocks, cutting off the ears, and branding with 
a red-hot iron, f There is still extant in the Secretary 
of State's office, an account of Jonas (lalusha against 
the State, to the amount of .^10, 4s. (3d. for executing 
the sentence of the Supreme Court upon Abel Geer, 
by cutting oif his right ear and branding him upon the 
forehead with the letter C. 

Besides these things, of themselves sufficient to 
make the office of sheriff* disagreeable to a man of 
ordinary sensibilities, there were at that time [)oliti- 
cal disturbances which greatly increased the laboi-s and 
responsibilities of the office, and made it still nioic 
irksome. The State had been organized only a short 
time, and opposition to its authority was still made in 

Hrrcs»,liut just hct'orc tlu' election he ilecliiied in r;iv<ir (ilaimthercniiiliilate. He riled iL'Jinie ls.Vi. 
li. Klon. I'l. l».liine 17!li>. ni. l{ets<>\ It.ittiiiii. In Isll and lsl_' l,e siuilied law with Ili.n. Uicliard 
Skinner, bnt. becondiiKa Christian, he tnrni d his attention to the study ol Theolo^^v. heeanie a 
Haptist minister, and was soon known as an < loiinenl and elt'eelive pr<'ach<r. His liist sellh- 
nn'nt was in Whiteshor,!. \. ■^■.. in isld. anil he (-(jnlinned Ihcie sivleen vears. Durinfi a pail 
(.llhat time lie was a^reid lor ( olniiilda ( 'o!lej;e. I>. < '.. and had ;;reat siicress inraisinji: Itinds Idr 
It. He was anion^r the most active ol the lonndersol' Haniillon ■riicMilo;:ical Seminary, and spent 
ahout a vear in lis serv ice al the time olils ^'iiatest emharrassnieid. In Js^iJ he hec'aini' pas lor 
<.rilie Uioad Street IJaplisM'hnrch in riiea. winl thence li> K'ncliestei-. and at a later perioil 
was lor sexeral >iars pastor in I'erry. InlSJii he visited ICnLdand in 'iihall'm' a philanlhropic 

I'Mterprise in wl'iicli he was intirested. In IstI he liei-ami' jiaslor in Lockport, and ( tinned 

Ihere till his death. •: .lannary ls.Vi. He was a nniii ol line pnlpil lalents.ol' jrenllenianlx nnm- 
ners, of an eniinentlv benevolent siiiril, and of distinjtnished usefulness in his deniMninali<Mi. 
His remarkable success in procuring' donations ior i(li;:ions and (harjtalile jinrposcs (gained 
lor him the n"'</ /•/'/<-/—'• Ivin>.' of Me^'^'ars.•■— 7. Martin, h. Is .lanuarv ITU:.', m. I'll Weptembei- 
lsl.\ Almira (-^oW*. removed to the State of New York in ISIS, and is slill living' in Kiichester.— 
S. ijuphia, b. .lilniiary 17!I4, d. It; April I7:M.— :•. -loiias, who died in infancy, 

* Slade's State Papers, p. 3-20. 362, 4.W. 
t II). p. '^'■^": 



Colt, 



8 Jonas Qalusha : 

some places, particularly in the South part of Wind- 
ham County, where an active and stubborn, if not 
numerous party upheld the jurisdiction of ^PsTew York. 
Conciliatory measures having failed to bring these 
men to submission, a coercive policy was adopted. 
Several of the leaders were arrested, tried by tlie 
Supreme Court, and banished from the State, under 
penalty of death if they returned. One of these had 
accepted from Gov. Clinton of JN^ew Yoi-k a commis- 
sion as Sherift' of Cumberland County, and two others 
had accepted commissions as Colonel and Lt. Colonel 
of an imaginary regiment of militia in the same County. 
After their lianishment, they were encouraged by Gov. 
(jUnton, with promises of support and military protect- 
ion, to return to Vermont, defy its authority, and 
attempt to overthrow its govornmem. From time to 
time, as they made themselves obnoxious, they were 
arrested, and committed to jail in Bennington; and 
during most of the year 1783 and a })art of 178^, one 
or more of them was almost continually in jail. They 
Avere allowed the free use of their pens, and used them 
freely in letters and newspaper articles defaming the 
sheriff, jailer, and all other Vermont officials, and 
laboring to excite popular sympathy in their own 
iavor. 

It was not a little to Mr. Galusha'"s credit that, in 
the midst of pecnliar trials and responsibilities, he so 
acquitted himself in the Sheriff's office as to command 
the confidence of the government and people, and to 
retain the office till he parted with it by voluntary 
resignation. There was in his character a blending of 
the energetic with the urbane, by which he commended 



Fifth OoVi'i'nor of VcrmonL ff 

himself to all witli Avhom lio had otlicial iiitercoui'se. 
He had an instinctive knowledge of luunan nature, and 
so great skill in managing men that he rarely failed 
of bringing the most I'efraetory to liis own terms. On 
one occasion when lie went to seive a process, 
the respondent seized an axe, and swore he would 
take the sheritrs life sooner than l)e arrested. Mr. 
Galusha was unarmed, exce[)t with a slender stick, but 
assured the man that he would teach him better than 
to threaten his life, and would have him in irons in 
less than an hour. P^u'tly by reasoning and partly by 
jesting, he talked the axe out of the man's hand, and 
accomphshed the arrest within the time limited. On 
another occasion, the respondent armed himself with 
a w^alnut club, and backed into a corner of the i-oom, 
declaring that he Avould not be taken. " Yes, you 
will," replied (xalusha, " but Fni in no hurry." '^JSTo, '' 
was the quick response, "I will not be taken alive.'' 
"Then," said Galusha, "you need to be better armed 
than with a club. I will give you a chance to get your 
gun and bayonet, and then I'll take you; but I'm sorry 
to say that I've nothing l)ut a sunnnons to take you 
with.'' The man, ashamed of having made such a 
demonstration against a harmless writ of summons, 
speedily threw down his w^eapon and submitted to the 
process. One of the last of his official acts w\as the 
disjjcrsal of a party of "Shay's men," wdio, upon the 
suppression of Shay's rebellion in Massachussets, tied 
to A^ermont early in 1787, and called a meeting at 
Shaftsbury, for the purpose of setting on foot a similar 
movement in this State. Mr. Galusha, in company 
with Gideon Olin, and other prominent citizens, attend- 



10 Jonas Oalusha: 

ed the meeting, warned them of the danger to which 
they were exposing themselves by tlieir illegal pro- 
ceedings, and notified them to quit the town forthwith. 
In the spring of 1787, he resigned the office, having 
held it six years. 

He was not again in public life till 1792, when he was 
elected a member of the second Council of Censors, the 
first that met after the admission of Vermont into the 
Union. This body proposed several material changes 
in the Constitution, among which were the establish- 
ment of a Senate, and of an advisory Council of four, 
and the limitation of the right of representation to 
towns having not less than forty families. He used 
all his influence in favor of these propositions, both in 
the Council and with the people, but none of them 
secured the popular assent. In 1793 he was elected 
a member of the Governor's Council, a body of twelve 
men, clothed with powers which rendered it nearly 
equivalent to a co-ordinate branch of the legislature. 
By successive elections, he held this* office six years, 
1793-98. In the mean time, his Avife had died, and he 
had married, as his second wife, Patty Sammons, 
daughter of Tun.othy Sammons of Huntington, L. I. * 

In 1795 he was elected an assistant Judge of Ben- 
nington County Court, and held the office three years. 
The legislature of 1798, which met at Yergennes, was 
strongly federal in politics, and as that party had not 
been in power for many years, its appetite for office 
had become ravenous in the extreme. Democratic of- 
ficeholders were removed and their places supplied with 



* She was born in HfU, and died, fliildless, 10 Novenilier I7!t7. Her deatli was tlnis noticed in a 
cotemporary newspaper,— ''In Shaltsbury, Nov. 10, 1797, Mrs. I'atty Ualuslia, the aniialjle con- 
sort of Jonas Galusha." 



Fifth Governor of Vermont. 9 

federalists, with such an unsparing band, that tlie 
place, where the sessions of this body were held, was 
long known by the name of " the Yergennes slaughter- 
house." Mr. Galusha was one of the vietims, but 
when his party regained the ascendency in 1800, he 
was restored to the judgeship, and i-emained in the 
oliice seven 3'ears, 1800-00. Having been a frequent 
attendant upon the sessions of the legislature, be was 
asked why he never came as representative. '' Because 
the freemen do not advise me to," was his rej^ly. In 
1800, however, the freemen of Shaftsbiny gave him 
that advice, and he took bis seat in the House ol" 
Representatives, but on the morning of tbe second 
day he resigned his seat, informing the House that he 
had been elected a Councillor, and had accepted the 
office. He remained a member of the Council seven 
successive years, 1800-06. 

He was elected a Judge of the Supreme Court in 
1807 and again in 1808. This was perhaps the 
highest tribute that could have been paid to his sound 
judgment and incorruptible integrity, for he had none 
of the legal learning usually regarded as an indispen- 
sable qualification for that office. His associates on 
the bench were Judges Tyler and Harrington, both of 
them remarkable men; the former for his classical 
learning, high literary culture, ready wit, and prolific 
authorship; the latter for his prodigious native 
powers of mind and his entire lack of cultivation. 
Judge Galusha occupied a position betwx^en the two, 
having neither the polish of Tyler, nor the strength 
of Harrington, but a practical connnon sense which 
made him as useful and acceptable a judge as either 

3 



XO Jonas Oalusha: 

of them. He was on the bench durmg the celebrated 
trial of the crew of the " Black Snake," a smuggling- 
vessel on Lake Champlain, whose crew had an afiray 
with a party of revenue officers, and killed two ot 
them; and he charged the jury in that case. In 1807, 
he was elected, on the part of the Council, United 
States Senator for the unexpired term of Israel Smith, 
but he failed to receive the concurrent vote of the 
House of Representatives. 

His third wife, whom he married in June 1808, died 
in 1809.*^' The same year he was chosen an Elector 
of President and Vice President, and with his col- 
leagues, gave the vote of Vermont to James Madison. 
He was chosen an Elector in 1821, and voted for 
James Monroe; and in 1825 and 1829, when he voted 
for John Quincy Adams. The popularity of Isaac 
Tichenor, who had been governor for eleven years, 
made it expedient for the republicans to nominate as 
his opposing candidate in 1809 the man who enjoyed 
the largest measure of confidence, and could command 
the greatest number of votes. That man was Jonas 
Galusha, and with him as their leader the republican 
party Vv^as successful in that campaign. He was re- 
elected in 1810, 1811, and 1812. In his speech to the 
legislature in 1812, he urged the adoption of measures 
co-operating with the general government in carrying- 
on the war with Great Britain, as well as providing for 
the defence of Vermont against possible invasion 
from Canada. Plis recommendations were adopted, 

* Ilor name was Abigail Ward, b. 1770, <\. 6 May 1809. Slie liad one cliild, Abigail, b. 15 April 
1S09. 



Fifth Governor of Vermont. 11 

and the requisite laws were enacted, but they were so 
oppressive in their practical operation, that many of 
the people went ovei- to the federal party. At the 
election in 181.'?, he had a large plurality of the votes, 
but not a majority. The majority of the returned 
members of the legislature, upon which the election 
was thus de^'olved, were republicans, thei-e being four 
federal majority in the House, and ten republican 
majority in the Council. But the federal leaders Avere 
shrewd and not over-scrupulous, and, finding that by 
rejecting the entire vote of Colchester for councilloi's, 
upon the j^retence that a large number of votes had 
been polled illegally by United States soldiers station- 
ed there, three more federal councillors would be 
elected and the Joint Assemby brought to a tie, they 
decided to do so, and the federal majority in the 
House carried out their purposes in that regard. The 
Joint Assembly balloted a numl3er of times every day 
for more than a week Avithout effecting a choice, till 
at length, on the 21st day of October, the votes w^ere 
declared to be one hundred and twelve for Martin 
Chittenden, and one hundred and eleven for Jonas 
Galusha. The one hundred and twelve republican 
members immediately signed a certificate that they 
did, each of them, on that boUot, vote for Jonas 
Galusha, and claimed that the ap^Darent result should 
be set aside and another ballot be taken. But the 
federal majority in the House i-efused to take any 
further action, and Martin Chittenden was declared 
(Governor. There is good reason to believe that the 
result of the ballot was correctly declared, only 
one hundred and eleven persons in fact voting for 



12 Jonas Qalusha ' 

Galusha, and Oliver Ingham of Canaan having with- 
held his vote. By what means he was induced to do 
so it is impossible now to ascertain. 

In 1814 Mr. Galusha was the delegate from Shafts- 
bury to the Constitutional Convention. After the 
restoration of peace w^th Great Britain, many of the 
causes which had *agitated the people of Yermont 
ceased to exist, and the republican party regained their 
ascendency. Mr. Galusha continued to be their 
candidate for governor, and in 1815 he was elected by 
a handsome majority. His speech to the legislature 
judiciously avoided all topics that could rekindle the 
expiring embers of party spirit. He alluded in suitable 
terms to the close of war and the grateful return of 
peace, but employed himself mainly with the business 
of the State. He was re-elected, year by year, by 
constantly increasing majorities, till 1819, when his 
competing candidate had only a few more than a 
thousand votes. *He then announced his determina- 
tion to remain no longer in public life, and in this he 
persisted, though urged to the contrary, not only by 
his political friends, but by many of the adverse party. 
The legislature adopted and presented an address, in 
Avhich they said — " In discharging the duties of 
"councillor, judge, and governor, you have ever 
"merited and received the approbation of your fellow 
"citizens." He was earnestly requested to be a candi- 
date for the United States Senate, which had he been, 
his election was morally certain, but he rejected the 
honor, nor did he again ever hold office, except that in 
1822, he was again a member of the Constitutional 
Convention, and the President of that body. A few 



Fifth Governor of Vermonf. 13 

years before, lie had man-ied bis fourtb wile, Mr.s. 
Nabby (Atwater) Beach, •'" and he now retired to 
private life, in which he enjoyed a serene and honored 
old age, till having nearly attained his eighty-second 
year, he died, 25 September 1834. f 

In person. Gov. Galusha was rather stoutly built, 
about five feet and nine inches in height, and at the 
same time of a very active temj^erament, as was 
indicated by his light complexion, blue eyes, and light 
hair inclining to be sandy. His dress was the plain 
but neat dress of a respectable farmer, who had 
mingled much with his fellow men, and was neither 
ignorant nor unmindful of the requirements of society. 
In conversation he was ready, though not copious, 
and he had a vein of humor which rendered him very 
agreeable socially. He was fond of domestic life, and 
singularly fortunate in his domestic relations. The 
four wives wdiom he successively married "were cheer- 
i'ul, amiable, and pious women, and he lived Avith them 
in harmony and happiness. His childi-en were well 
trained, and all of them who survived childhood 
became professors of religion, one of them an eminent 
minister in the Baptist denomination. 

Though not himself a member of any church, he 
was, in the estimation of those best competent to judge, 
a true Christian. He maintained family worshij) in 
all its forms, was known to observe private devotions, 
was an habitual attendant upon public Avorshij) and at 
social meetings, and frequently took an active part in 

* His marriage was thus announced In one ol' tlie papers ol' tliut il:iy;— '"In Cavendlsli, Kcli. 
•24, 1H18, Jonas Galuslia, and Mrs. Naliliy IJearli. a lady of unlileiuislied repulatiou, an<l possi's- 
KUiff in an eminent decree, tliosc amialde lemale virtues, wliose price is far al>ove ruliiis." She 
was born 2 April 1704, and died ao July IH-Jl. 

t Ills funeral sermon, which is still extant in manuscript, was preached hy the Kev. "W'arliani 
Walker, from 2 Sam . S : ;ts. "Know ye not that there Is a prince and a great man fallen this day 
in Israel?" 



14 Jonas Oalusha: 

the latter. In his daily life he was also such as a 
Christian should be, modest, gentle, amiable, upright, 
faithful to every obligation. He was the first Gover- 
nor of Vermont, who introduced the word Christ 
into the date of his proclamations. When nearly 
seventy -nine years of age, he attended a "protracted 
meeting" at Manchester, and took an active part in its 
exercises ; as the result of which, he was aroused to a 
sense of the duty of making a public ]:)rofession of 
religion, and announced his intention to do so, but was 
prevented from accomplishing his purpose hj a stroke 
of paralysis which he experienced soon after, and from 
vv^liich he never recovered. During the protracted 
sickness which ensued, his cheerfulness, patience, 
resignation, and Christian conversation bore witness 
to the genuine piety that was in his soul. 

Integrity and impartiality were such marked traits 
in his character that he was not seldom chosen as an 
arbitrator even by his enemies. His foi'bearance was 
such that he never resented an injury, but endeavored 
by his words and actions to make his enemies his 
friends. 13enevolence to the poor was another of his 
distinguishing characteristics. He made their wants 
his own, and relieved them accordingly. It was no 
imusual thing for him, when, in the discharge of his 
official duties as sheriff, he had been made the instru- 
ment of reducing a poor man to still deeper poverty, 
to furnish the unfortunate debtor the means of 
extricating himself from embarrassment. He also gave 
freely to various benevolent societies, and took an 
active part in their affairs. He was President of the 
Bennington County Colonization Society, and Bible 



Fifth Oovernor of Vermont. 15 

Society, and one of the Yiee-Presidents of the 
Yermont Bible Society. When the temperance 
reformation had i)roceeded as far as the total-absti- 
nence movement, he gave liis influence and example 
in its fiivor, and though he was far advanced in years, 
and had, all his life-time, been accustomed to the 
moderate use of alcoholic liquors, he at once aban- 
doned the habit, though not without fear that the 
sudden change might affect him injuriously. 

He was painfully conscious of the deficiencies of 
his early education, and feelingly alluded to them in 
his first executive address. But his quick perception, 
his retentive memory, his sound judgment, his ready 
wit, and his prompt command of all his intellectual 
powers and resources, were qualities which stood him 
in better stead, and more amply fitted him for his 
various duties, than the best scholastic education could 
have done without them. He had a rich fund of 
anecdote, upon which he drew frequently and with 
great effect. He was not addicted to public speaking, 
but could, when occasion required, express himself 
clearly and forcibly. His executive addresses were 
short, rarely exceeding in length four printed octavo 
pages, and frequently not more than half or two thirds 
as long. In style they were quite unadorned, but 
concise and perspicuous. To the contrary, his procla- 
mations for Fasts and Thanksgivings were of unusual 
length; sometimes, indeed, nearly as long as his 
messages, indicating that he was more accustomed to 
thinking and writing upon religious subjects than 
upon political afiairs. 



76) Jonas Galuslia. 

Politically he was a democrat of the Jeftersonian 
school, and it may shed some light upon the pedigree 
of modern parties, to notice, that, without any change 
of his political views, he voted successively for 
Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, and Adams. Though in 
office nearly all the time for forty 3^ears, he was not an 
office-seeker. Rather did office seek him, on account 
of his eminent fitness for it. He accepted it from a 
sense of duty rather than from choice, and while in it 
sought to secure the public good rather than his own. 
Perhaps Yermont has never had a governor more 
worthy of the eulogy which Fulke Greville pro- 
nounced upon Sir Henry Sidney: — '^He was such a 
^' governor as sought not to make an end of the State 
" for himself, but to plant his own ends in the pros- 
" perity of his country." 



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